Denver Nuggets look lifeless at home, getting blown out 145-118 by the New York Knicks

On By Littum

The Denver Nuggets returned home after a one-game road trip to face one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams in the New York Knicks. New York came out strong early and used a big second quarter to put a big gap between them and Denver on the scoreboard. With the big lead, the Nuggets started to lose heart and it led to an embarrassing blowout loss. Denver’s big three played well and Russell Westbrook had an incredible fourth quarter, but nobody played defense all night and the Knicks took advantage. The Nuggets lose an ugly one 145-118.

The game started slowly from a scoring standpoint with only six points combined in the first two minutes. The Nuggets got some tough calls, but also kept New York from getting any good looks. The Knicks were able to build a small lead behind Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges that reached six midway through the quarter. Nikola Jokic kept the Nuggets in it with some hyper-aggressive scoring, with New York having no defenders to slow him down. He hit double figures with several minutes left in the first. The three balls put New York ahead, but Denver stayed within striking distance as the quarter drew to a close. Brunson and Jokic dueled in the final minutes, and Brunson won the battle. He single-handedly led the Knicks on a 9-2 run, and New York took a 36-24 lead.

Michael Porter Jr. got a couple of buckets to start the second quarter, but the bench group otherwise looked completely lost. New York ripped off an 11-0 run to put themselves up twenty-one. After eight minutes, Michael Malone was forced to bring Jokic back into the game. It didn’t matter much as the Knicks were still doing everything and no one outside of Porter scored for Denver. The Nuggets chipped away at the lead and got it back under twenty with just under half of the quarter remaining, but some mental errors on defense got it back again. That continued to be the story down the first half. Porter would bring Denver closer and then they would take a step back. Each time they did, their shoulders sagged a little more and they looked a little less interested in the field. At the end of the half, they trailed 76-53.

Denver opened the second half forgetting to defend at least one player on seemingly every possession, prompting a rage-inducing timeout from Malone less than two minutes into the third quarter. The Knicks just ran on every Nuggets shot attempt and got easy layups in transition. A little further into the quarter, the Nuggets got on a bit of a run to force a New York timeout as they had trimmed the lead to just twenty two. As was the case all night, they made too many mistakes on defense to put together any kind of meaningful rally. With four minutes left in the third, Westbrook made a three-pointer, the first field goal off the bench, and the lead was down to twenty. They kept it around there with the neighborhood settled. OG Anunoby was a thorn in Denver’s side all quarter, but he kept finding himself wide open and had thirty-eight points before the quarter ended (18 in the third alone). After three, Denver trailed 113-87.

The fourth opened with more Knicks scoring at will as they continued to get what they wanted. By the time the game reached about eight minutes to go, the lead was up to thirty and it looked like there would be no need to bring back Jokic or Jamal Murray. Westbrook deserves credit for still playing with intensity in a game where the lead was up to thirty-five. He ended up having a big fourth quarter, scoring twenty-four points and at least making things look a little more respectable, but there wasn’t much else to cheer about. Malone cleared the bench with three minutes left and garbage time was ready. Nuggets lose big, 145-118.

I have to find the mental toughness

The Nuggets looked completely disinterested tonight, especially on the defensive end. It became almost comical at the start of the third quarter when the Knicks pretty much just leaked a guy out on every possession and the Nuggets gave him free runs to the basket. The entire matador defense built New York’s confidence and then they couldn’t miss. Suddenly, OG Anunoby looked like Kevin Durant. Energy continues to be a story for the Nuggets early in the season and not in a good way. Hopefully they can find their collective fire soon.

Jamal looked better

November 25, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) dribbles the ball in the first quarter against the New York Knicks at Ball Arena. Mandatory credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

A silver lining for tonight is Jamal Murray’s play. He’s been through a big slump to start the season, but at least tonight he looked a little more like himself. I think he still looks a step slow to get around his defender and at the other end of the pitch the opposition is definitely targeting him, but that’s nothing new. Denver doesn’t need bubble Murray right now, they really need a few more nights like tonight. If Jamal can continue to put up 20 points and throw in a half-dozen or more assists a night, it will go a long way to reassuring Nuggets Nation.